Kevin in Videoland The Lost Scenes
by Tuxedo Mark
Summary: A collection of scenes, dated 1231997 and 271997, that I had written for an expanded novelization of the pilot episode that was never completed.
1. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
  
She wanted to fight. But it was her duty to lead Videoland.  
  
Princess Lana, Ruler of Videoland, sat on her bed in her bedroom, filled  
with despair.  
  
Outside of the Palace of Power, swords clashed, spears hit their marks,  
and laser beams did their damage.  
  
The Palace's searchlights were moving all around, so that the Palace's  
army could quickly spot its enemies.  
  
But things were not going well for the royal army. The opposing forces  
were marching towards the Palace, chanting eerily.  
  
For the past seven years, the evil Mother Brain had been sending her  
troops to lay siege on the Palace of Power.  
  
A month ago, Princess Lana's father, King Charles of Videoland,  
mysteriously disappeared.  
  
Lana had always suspected Mother Brain was behind her father's  
disappearance.  
  
Lana's brother, Prince Lyle, was supposed to take over and rule Videoland  
in his father's absence, but he had moved away one night a year ago without  
leaving any message, so Lana had absolutely no idea where her brother was.  
  
And even if she did, she couldn't contact him. Mother Brain's forces had  
completely knocked out the Palace's entire communications system. She  
couldn't even call for reinforcements.  
  
So, Lana had taken over as Ruler of Videoland. She didn't want to, but  
she felt she had no choice.  
  
The war had been going very badly for the Throne. Princess Lana had lost  
most of the Palace's army. She decided to summon the most courageous heroes  
in all of Videoland to help her in the fight: Simon Belmont of Castlevania,  
Mega Man of Mega Land, and Kid Icarus of Mount Icarus.  
  
Lana watched as the lights in her bedroom dimmed and brightened, dimmed  
and brightened. She knew the end was near.  
  
Princess Lana got up, went to her closet, and got out her power sceptor.  
She wasn't going to go down without a fight.  
  
Lana went to her dresser, picked up the picture of her father, looked at  
it for a moment, then set it back down.  
  
She left the room and went to join her friends in the Throne Room. She  
wanted to say good-bye, and fight at their side.  
  
  
  
Kevin had thought about Stacey all through the weekend, and on Monday,  
they wished each other good luck and took the test.  
  
Now, four days after he had helped Stacey study, Kevin was lying on his  
bed, happy that they both made a perfect score.  
  
He heard the front door unlock. Kevin looked over at his clock radio. It  
was 6:00 PM. His parents were home from work.  
  
Kevin got up and went to the living room.  
  
"Hi, Kev." his dad said.  
  
"Hi, sweetheart." his mom said.  
  
"Hi." Kevin said.  
  
"Well, mister," his mom said. "did you clean up your room like I told you  
to this morning?"  
  
Kevin suddenly remembered. "Oh, - no, I forgot!"  
  
"Well, go start on it. I'll have dinner ready in an hour."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Do you have any homework?"  
  
"Yeah, Algebra."  
  
"Well, then, do that too." She turned to go into the kitchen. "And don't  
forget to take out the trash."  
  
Kevin sighed. "Yes, mom." He turned to leave.  
  
Kevin's dad then went over to his wife. "You were a little hard on him,  
weren't you, dear?"  
  
"He's been putting this off way too long, Ned. Nothing short of being  
pulled from this Earth will be a good excuse for not doing what I told him."  
  
Kevin went to his room and closed the door behind him. Then, he had a  
thought. He locked the door and went over to his Nintendo.  
  
Kevin selected Punch-Out and put it in the control deck. Then he heard  
barks behind him. Kevin turned and saw Duke standing there.  
  
He must've come in while I was talking with mom, Kevin realized. "Duke!"  
he said cheerfully, then he whispered. "Listen, I won't tell mom if you  
won't! Deal?!"  
  
Duke nodded and barked in agreement.  
  
"Good boy!" Kevin said. He turned the TV on, pressed the POWER button on  
the control deck, took his NES Advantage in his hands, sat in his chair, and  
started the game.  
  
  
  
At the Palace of Power, Princess Lana was ready to kick ass.  
  
She had her power sceptor in her left hand, and was standing with her  
friends: Simon Belmont, Mega Man, and Kid Icarus.  
  
"Ready?" Lana asked them.  
  
All three of them nodded.  
  
Lana nodded. "All right, now, I know we're no match for them, and we're  
going to die." She made a fist with her right hand. "But let's take out as  
many of them as we can before that happens!"  
  
"Right!" the three of them said in agreement, nodding.  
  
Lana then broke down and cried. She threw her power sceptor to the floor  
next to the throne and threw herself down on the seat.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------ 


	2. Chapter 6

Chapter 6  
  
Flying high in the air, circling the Palace of Power, was Metroid, the  
brain-shaped ship of the evil Mother Brain.  
  
Mother Brain was a huge brain connected to an ugly pink face. She was  
encased inside a protective glass jar, and had two tentacles.  
  
Mother Brain and her two servants, King Hippo from the strange world of  
Punch-Out, and the Eggplant Wizard from Mount Icarus, were in Mother Brain's  
layer deep within Metroid, watching the viewscreen with great interest.  
  
Mother Brain's troops were winning.  
  
King Hippo turned to Eggplant Wizard and laughed. "Ha, ha, we're too  
strong for 'em!"  
  
Eggy nodded in agreement.  
  
Mother Brain extended her left tentacle from her glass jar, curled it  
around King Hippo's right leg, and lifted him off the floor.  
  
The blue hippo yelled.  
  
Mother Brain brought him close to her, so that he was staring at her  
upside-down.  
  
"Who's too strong for them, King Hippo?!" Mother Brain asked.  
  
"Uh, uh - you! You're to strong for 'em, Mother Brain!" King Hippo  
stuttered.  
  
Mother Brain smiled evilly.  
  
The Eggplant Wizard laughed to himself.  
  
But Mother Brain heard him. "What's so funny, Eggplant Wizard?!"  
  
Eggy was startled. He looked around, then at Mother Brain, and pointed at  
himself. "Uh, who - me?" He asked nervously, stuttering.  
  
Eggy looked up. King Hippo yelled as Mother Brain dropped him. Eggy tried  
to run away, vegetables popping out of him, but the heavy hippo landed on  
him.  
  
Eggy raised his head from the floor. "Nothing, Mother Brain, uh,  
nothing's funny at all!"  
  
Mother Brain smiled. "That's right! Especially for those poor souls in  
the Palace of Power! It won't be long before I, beautiful goddess that I am,  
become Queen of Videoland!"  
  
She then let out a long, evil laugh. Eggy joined in quietly.  
  
  
  
As Metroid was flying past the front of the Palace of Power, Princess  
Lana had gathered in the Throne Room with three warriors that she had  
summoned to help Videoland in the war against Mother Brain.  
  
They were Simon Belmont, the vampire hunter from Castlevania, Mega Man,  
the robot creation of Dr. Right from Mega Land, and Kid Icarus, the winged  
archer from Mount Icarus.  
  
Lana expected them all to be dead within an hour.  
  
Lana was sitting on her throne - her father's throne.  
  
The sad Princess was wearing her usual clothes: a white and pink skirt,  
a pink sleeveless shirt with white shoulders, blue boots with a yellow  
stripe on each, a gold crown on her head, a green and gold necklace around  
her neck, and gold earrings.  
  
Her long, beautiful, brown hair was hanging down. It was straight, not  
curly. Some of it was standing up in the back, held by a small blue band. It  
was her personal style. She had always liked her hair like that.  
  
Tears were about to come pouring out of her beautiful green eyes.  
  
Mega Man was standing to her right.   
  
Standing in back of Mega Man was Simon.   
  
To Lana's left flew Kid Icarus. 


	3. Recharge & Dinner

"C'mon, let's get outta here!" Kevin yelled.  
  
"I'm with ya!" Lana answered.  
  
Kevin turned and ran into the warp zone, with Simon and Duke right behind  
him, followed by Lana, Kid Icarus, and Mega Man.  
  
  
  
  
When they emerged from the warp in the Palace of Power, Lana looked out a  
window. Monsters were still roaming around outside. Mother Brain's troops  
were still storming the Palace.  
  
Lana turned to face Kevin. "Help me wipe 'em out?"  
  
Kevin smiled and nodded. "Sure!"  
  
"But you're out of power." Lana remembered. "We gotta find a way to  
recharge your Zapper first." She held out her left hand.  
  
Kevin looked down at the belt, felt around, and unsnapped it in the back.  
He handed the belt over to Lana.  
  
Lana took it. "C'mon, I think I know a way we can recharge this."  
  
Kevin turned around and motioned to man's best friend with his right  
hand, smiling. "C'mon, Duke!"  
  
Duke followed Kevin and Lana down the corridor.  
  
  
  
They came to a closed double-door. There was a keypad to the left of the  
door.  
  
Lana typed in 8 6 7 5 3 0 9 with her left index finger. There was a short  
beep, and the doors slid open.  
  
"Follow me." Lana said, looking at Kevin, and then she went inside.  
  
Kevin looked at his pup while following Lana. "C'mon, Duke."  
  
Duke, noticing that nothing but black could be seen past the doorway,  
reluctantly followed Kevin.  
  
As soon as all three of them were past the doorway, the double-door  
closed shut behind them.  
  
Duke barked in a panic. Then they could see each other after Lana turned  
on the flashlight that was mounted on the wall.  
  
Carrying the flashlight in her left hand, she looked at Kevin. "This  
way."  
  
Lana pointed the flashlight in front of them, and the three of them  
walked silently for five minutes.  
  
They came to a dead end. Against the wall was something that resembled a  
fireplace.  
  
Lana handed the flashlight to Kevin, who held it in his right hand. She  
then crouched down and removed the metal cover from the "fireplace", setting  
it down on the floor.  
  
Instantly, a bright light appeared.  
  
"Woah!" Kevin said, and covered his eyes with his left arm. Lana did the  
same. Duke lay down on the floor and covered his eyes with his paws.  
  
The three of them uncovered their eyes after thirty seconds. Duke got up.  
  
Kevin went over to Lana's right and crouched down next to her, looking  
into the "fireplace" with her. Duke also went over and looked inside.  
  
There was a large glowing rock inside. It gave off a brilliant white  
light. It was about the size of a filled trash bag.  
  
"This is the Sun Stone." Lana said. "It provides all the energy for the  
Palace."  
  
"Cool!" Kevin said. He reached out with his left hand to touch it, then  
pulled back. He looked at Lana.  
  
Lana nodded. "It's all right, go ahead."  
  
Kevin placed his hand on it. It felt warm, but not hot.  
  
He removed his hand and looked at Lana. "You think it'll recharge my  
Zapper?"  
  
Lana looked at Kevin. "There's only one way to find out!" She removed  
Kevin's Zapper from its holster with her left hand and carefully laid it on  
top of the Sun Stone.  
  
After ten seconds, she removed the Zapper with her left hand, turned,  
pointed in the direction from which they came, and pressed the trigger.  
  
Nothing.  
  
"Guess that won't work!" Kevin said.  
  
"Wait a minute." Lana said, and then placed Kevin's belt, with the Power  
Pad attached to it, on the Sun Stone.  
  
She deliberately placed the Power Pad so that the power meter on top  
faced them.  
  
The three of them watched as the lights on the power meter slowly turned  
on. When they were all on, Lana turned again and pressed the trigger on the  
Zapper.  
  
A brilliant laser beam lighted the hallway for a moment.  
  
"Bingo!" Lana said with a smile, looking at the Zapper.  
  
"I don't get it." Kevin said, confused.  
  
"The two share the same power source!" Lana exclaimed, looking at Kevin.  
"Power up the Power Pad, and the Zapper will work, too!"  
  
"Ahhh, cool!" Kevin said, smiling.  
  
Lana took the belt off of the Sun Stone and placed the Zapper back in its  
holster.  
  
The Sun Stone had immediately replaced the energy used when Lana fired  
the Zapper, so the power meter was all the way up.  
  
Lana replaced the metal cover. She and Kevin got up.  
  
"Let's go." Lana said.  
  
Kevin pointed the flashlight and led the way. Lana walked behind him, and  
Duke behind her.  
  
"Now that we know how to power your weapons, we outta build a machine  
to do it for us." Lana said. "It'll be more convenient than to walk all  
the way here every time you need a refill!"  
  
Kevin frowned as he thought of home, and how he must go back.  
  
Lana didn't see it. "We'll start working on it tomorrow." she said.  
  
They reached the double-door in five minutes. Kevin found the keypad and  
shined the light on it.  
  
Lana stepped in front of him and typed in 8 6 7 5 3 0 9 with her left  
index finger. There was a short beep, and the doors slid open.  
  
Lana walked out. Kevin put the flashlight back in its place on the wall  
and followed her. Duke followed his master.  
  
The doors slid closed again.  
  
Lana turned to Kevin. "Let's go back to my room. I gotta get my weapon."  
  
Kevin nodded.  
  
  
  
They walked up to the doors to Lana's room.  
  
"What happened here?!" Lana asked, looking at the big hole in the  
doors.  
  
"Uh, I made it with my Zapper when King Hippo and Eggplant Wizard came to  
kidnap you. I'm sorry, Your Highness."  
  
Lana smiled and placed her left hand on Kevin's right shoulder. "That's  
okay, Kevin, you were trying to help me!"  
  
Kevin smiled.  
  
"And, . . . since I didn't say anything before, thank you for rescuing  
me."  
  
Kevin's smile widened. "No problem."  
  
Lana then turned and walked into her room. Kevin went in after her,  
followed by Duke.  
  
Lana went to her closet, opened the door, and pulled out her weapon.  
  
"Cool!" Kevin said. "What is it?"  
  
"A laser rifle." Lana said. "My father gave it to me for my birthday this  
year."  
  
Kevin smiled, kind of amused at the thought of someone getting a gun for  
their birthday, but then again, he understood, considering what Videoland  
was going through.  
  
Lana checked the green power meter on top of the white weapon. All the  
lights were on. The weapon was fully charged.  
  
Kevin saw the way Lana held the rifle. "You're left-handed, aren't you?"  
  
Lana looked up at him. "Mostly, why?"  
  
"My mom is kind of suspicious of left-handed people."  
  
"Why?" Lana asked. She didn't understand.  
  
Kevin shrugged and shook his head. "I really don't know."  
  
Lana nodded. "You ready?"  
  
Kevin nodded.  
  
The two of them left the room, with Duke right behind them.  
  
  
  
Lana, Kevin, and Duke went into another room ten floors above.  
  
Lana slid open the sliding door leading out to the balcony. Immediately,  
the eerie chants of the invading forces down below could be heard.  
  
Duke whined, afraid.  
  
Kevin turned to Duke, his expression serious. "You better stay here,  
boy!"  
  
The canine got behind a chair and watched.  
  
Lana turned to face Kevin. "Okay, when we get out there, start shooting  
like your life depends on it, 'cause it does."  
  
Kevin looked straight ahead, then nodded. "Gotcha."  
  
Lana patted Kevin on the back with her right hand, and then the two of  
them walked, side by side, out onto the balcony.  
  
Kevin and Lana looked down at the army storming the Palace.  
  
"There's still a lot of them left." Lana said. "But we can take care of  
them!" And with that, Lana pointed her weapon down at the troops and began  
firing.  
  
Fast laser bolts shot downward, mowing down the monsters.  
  
Kevin smiled and began firing his Zapper at the invading force.  
  
Duke watched as Kevin and Lana kept shooting.  
  
After a minute, the laser beams stopped.  
  
"I outta power!" Kevin yelled, looking at his Zapper.  
  
Lana looked at him. "Me, too, but it doesn't matter!" She pointed with  
her right index finger downward.  
  
Kevin looked down.  
  
They stood there in silence for a moment. There was no one left. No  
monsters. No robotic soldiers. Kevin and Lana had killed all of them. Every  
single one.  
  
Lana looked up at Kevin and smiled. "C'mon, let's get you recharged."  
  
Kevin smiled back at her.  
  
The two of them walked back into the room. Lana closed the sliding door  
and locked it. Duke got up off the floor and followed them out of the room.  
  
  
  
After another recharge from the Sun Stone, and after Lana had put her  
laser rifle back in her closet, they all met in the Throne Room.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Kevin put his Zapper back in its holster.  
  
The warp closed.  
  
Kevin turned to face Lana.  
  
"Well," Lana said, "we're gonna have dinner now."  
  
Kevin smiled. "Great! I'm starved!!! You guys pulled me from my world  
before I ate!"  
  
Lana smiled. "Sorry! Bad timing!"  
  
"What are you guys having?"  
  
"Well, since this is your first night here, you get to decide!" Lana  
answered.  
  
"Well, um, . . . how 'bout roasted chicken and mashed potatoes with  
gravy?"  
  
Lana nodded. "Okay." She turned to leave. "I'll go get started."  
  
"I'll help you." Kevin said, following her.  
  
Duke followed Kevin and Lana to the Palace's kitchen.  
  
  
  
In the kitchen, Lana began asking: "Captain N,-"  
  
"Kevin." Kevin said. "Please, call me Kevin. All my friends do."  
  
Lana smiled. "Kevin." She stared at him for a moment, then remembered her  
original thought. "Uh, could you please get a small pan for me?"  
  
"Sure." Kevin went and got a small pan from the many that were hanging on  
hooks. Lana, meanwhile, got all the ingredients to make gravy.  
  
Kevin came back with the pan. "Here ya go." he said, handing it to Lana.  
  
"Thanks." Lana said, taking it. She began to make the gravy.  
  
Kevin watched her.  
  
"So, um," Lana said, starting a conversation. "I guess you've got a lot  
of questions, huh?"  
  
"Yeah!" Kevin said, nodding.  
  
"Well, this is Videoland. It is a universe where the characters of the  
games you play in your world live."  
  
Kevin nodded. "I've played this game before. That's how I knew how to  
rescue you. Of course, Simon insisted he was right, and we ended up in  
Kongo Land before we got to Metroid!"  
  
Lana laughed. "Leave it to Simon to make a mistake like that!"  
  
Kevin laughed. "Yeah, anyway, we were chased by Donkey Kong, but we  
finally managed to get out of there and get to Metroid."  
  
Lana nodded.  
  
"So, um, this war is about Mother Brain trying to conquer Videoland,  
right?"  
  
Lana nodded, painful memories coming back. "Seven years ago, Mother Brain  
sent her troops to lay siege on the Palace. My father, King Charles, was  
Ruler of Videoland in those days. Then, a month ago, he mysteriously  
disappeared."  
  
"Yeah." Kevin nodded, remembering the story given in the Videoland game  
manual that came with the game.  
  
"My brother, Prince Lyle, was supposed to take his place as Ruler of  
Videoland, but he left a year ago during the night without leaving any  
message, so I have absolutely no idea where he is. So, I had to take over as  
Ruler of Videoland. I didn't want to, but I had no choice!"  
  
"Well, couldn't you try to contact him?" Kevin asked.  
  
"Even if I knew where he was, I couldn't. Mother Brain's forces have  
completely knocked out the Palace's entire communications system. I couldn't  
even call for reinforcements!"  
  
Kevin nodded.  
  
"The war has been going very badly for us. I've lost most of the Palace's  
army. Finally, I decided to summon the most courageous heroes in all of  
Videoland to help me: Simon Belmont of Castlevania, Mega Man of Mega Land,  
and Kid Icarus of Mount Icarus."  
  
Kevin nodded. "Yeah, it's all in the game manual I read."  
  
"They're all old friends of me and my father. They've been to the Palace  
before. So, naturally, when I called them last month, they came right  
away!"  
  
"They would!" Kevin said. "Between saving their own worlds, and  
saving all of Videoland, they would definitely pick Videoland!"  
  
Lana nodded. "Yeah, great friends. I, uh, I knew the end was near. In  
fact, right before you came, I was ready to die."  
  
Kevin really felt sorry for her. She'd been through a lot.  
  
"Then," Lana said, "an ancient prophecy was fulfilled, and the Ultimate  
Warp Zone brought you, the best game player from your world, here to save  
us!"  
  
Kevin put his hands in front of him and shook his head. "Woah, woah,  
wait a minute! I am not the best game player from my world!"  
  
"But you have to be! If the Ultimate Warp Zone picked you, then-"  
  
"Okay," Kevin interrupted, "I think the reason the Ultimate Warp Zone  
picked me is not because of my game-playing skills - obviously! I mean,  
I'm absolutely horrible at most games!"  
  
Lana was surprised.  
  
"It's because I know a lot of things about the games! Secrets most  
other people don't know!"  
  
"Ahhh." Lana nodded, understanding.  
  
Kevin smiled, curious. "So, uh, how old is this prophecy, anyway?"  
  
"Well, the Prophecy, itself, is thousands of years old."  
  
"So people have known that I was coming thousands of years before I was  
born?!" Kevin asked, astonished.  
  
Lana shook her head, laughing. "No, that requires a bit more of an  
explanation! The part of the Prophecy dealing with your arrival is only  
seven years old. My father told me about it. I was eight at the time."  
  
"So you're fifteen now?"  
  
Lana nodded. "Yeah."  
  
"When's your birthday?"  
  
"June first." Lana said.  
  
Kevin smiled. "So's mine! Hey, we're the same age!"  
  
Lana smiled. "Yeah."  
  
"Cool." Kevin said. "So, this Prophecy told your dad in 1982 that I was  
coming to Videoland?"  
  
Lana nodded. "Yeah."  
  
After a few seconds, Kevin realized something. "Hey! Wait a minute!  
These video games weren't around back then!"  
  
"That's something else I have to tell you." Lana had started cooking  
the mashed potatoes, and was now working on the chicken. "Your people  
created Videoland."  
  
"Huh?!" Kevin asked, surprised. He was assisting Lana with the dead bird.  
  
Lana nodded, smiling. "That's right! You sound surprised."  
  
"Well, . . . I am. I didn't think humans could make a universe!"  
  
"Well, they did!" Lana said, smiling. "Anyway, this universe itself has  
only existed for four years."  
  
"When the games first started coming out." Kevin realized.  
  
Lana nodded. "Right. Anyway, whenever a new game comes out in your  
world, a new video world is created in our universe, but that world has  
its own history, which could go back a million years! Get it?"  
  
Kevin nodded. "So, what happens when a new world is created. Are your  
memories automatically altered to include memories of it?"  
  
Lana shook her head. "No. In fact, I don't even know all of the worlds  
in Videoland. And whenever a new one is created, I don't even find out about  
it unless I stumble across it! I have to introduce myself whenever I go to  
a world that we haven't contacted yet!"  
  
"Really?!" Kevin asked.  
  
Lana nodded. "Yep." She and Kevin placed the stuffed chicken in the oven,  
and Lana raised the temperature. "This'll take about an hour. C'mon, let's  
sit and talk for a while."  
  
She and Kevin sat next to each other at the kitchen table, with Kevin at  
Lana's right. Duke came near Kevin, then laid down on the floor and listened  
to their conversation.  
  
"So, um, you seem to know a lot about me." Lana started. "What about  
you?"  
  
"Well, uh," Kevin said, "I'm from Northridge, California. I go to  
Northridge High School. I'm in tenth grade." He pointed at his jacket. "This  
is my school jacket."  
  
Lana smiled. "N for Northridge!"  
  
Kevin nodded, smiling. "Yep! Uh, what does the N in Captain N stand for,  
anyway?"  
  
"The same thing as in N-Team: Nintendo!" Lana said.  
  
"Oh, yeah." Kevin said, remembering reading in the game manual that  
N-Team meant Nintendo Team."  
  
"The N on the jacket is a nice coincidence!" Lana said.  
  
Kevin nodded. "Yeah!"  
  
"Where are my manners?" Lana asked, disgusted at herself. "Would you like  
something to drink?"  
  
"Do you have Pepsi in Videoland?" Kevin asked.  
  
"We might - on another video world!" Lana answered. "What is it?"  
  
"A soda."  
  
"Soda?" Lana asked, scratching her head.  
  
"It's a carbonated drink with caffeine and flavoring." Kevin shook his  
head. "Never mind."  
  
"Do you want orange juice?" Lana asked.  
  
"Okay." Kevin said, nodding and smiling.  
  
Lana got up and went to the fridge. She opened it and took out a carton  
of orange juice. She closed the fridge, went to a cabinet, pulled out two  
big glasses, and closed the cabinet. She poured herself and Kevin an equal  
amount, filling both glasses almost fully, and then threw the empty carton  
into the recycling bin. "SAVE THE UNIVERSE" was written on the bin.  
  
Lana carried both glasses back to the table and took her seat. "So, what  
do you like to do for fun?"  
  
"Play video games mostly." Kevin replied. "I'm also on the  
junior-varsity swim team at my school. It was my mom's idea. She felt I  
needed the exercise." He laughed. "C'mon! I ride my bike to and from  
school every weekday!"  
  
Lana laughed. "Your mom means well!" She shook her head. "Don't worry,  
I won't make you swim!"  
  
Kevin and Lana laughed out loud for a few moments.  
  
"So," Kevin said after they finished, "what about your mom?"  
  
Lana lost her smile. She set her glass down on the table. "She's dead."  
  
"Oh," Kevin said, surprised, "I'm so sorry."  
  
"Thanks." Lana said.  
  
"If you don't mind me asking, how'd it happen?"  
  
"It happened when I was born. She died giving birth to me." Lana  
shook her head. "I never knew her."  
  
Kevin just looked at her, inviting her to go on.  
  
"My father raised me. And when Mother Brain attacked, he taught me how  
to fight. I first picked up a gun when I was eight years old. I'm a fast  
learner, and so I also learned how to swordfight."  
  
"Can I see your sword later on?" Kevin asked.  
  
Lana smiled. "Sure. I'll also show you my power sceptor."  
  
"Thanks." Kevin said, smiling. "Uh, I gotta admit, this is a little  
weird for me. You know, being surrounded by cartoons, and being a cartoon  
myself."  
  
"What?" Lana asked, confused.  
  
"Well, on my world, everything here, and everyone, including me,  
would be called cartoons, animated drawings, you know."  
  
Lana nodded. "Ah, I remember hearing that things in your universe look  
different."  
  
Kevin nodded.  
  
"So," Lana said, "tell me about your parents."  
  
"Well," Kevin said, "my dad sells insurance, and my mom's a bank teller."  
  
Lana listened with great interest as Kevin talked about his parents.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
They were walking down a corridor, when Lana stopped at a large round  
cover on the wall. She pulled on the cover. It turned out to be a door.  
Behind it was a warp zone, the same swirling blue color as the warp zone  
that brought Kevin to this new world.  
  
"All the warp zones in this Palace are behind doors just like this  
one." Lana explained. "This particular warp leads to Mega Land."  
  
"Cool!" Kevin said, looking at the warp.  
  
Lana closed the door. "Now, c'mon," she said, turning and walking away, "there's 


End file.
